Burglars target U Chicago students' off-campus apartment building

There are safety concerns among some University of Chicago students after their apartment building was burglarized multiple times. (WLS)

WLS

Liz Nagy

Monday, October 17, 2016

CHICAGO (WLS) --

There are safety concerns among some University of Chicago students after their apartment building was burglarized multiple times.

University police said they're trying to help students along South University Boulevard feel safer after they reported their off-campus apartments have been broken into.

Shilpa Mantri and her roommates now lock themselves into their Hyde Park apartment with an extra layer of lots. While their place in the 5400 block of South University sat mostly empty before school started, that didn't stop it from being a target.

"My subletter was the last one to leave, and saw that all the doors, windows, rooms, cabinets, everything had just been looked through," Mantri said.

The same thing happened in the basement apartment downstairs.

"I lost two large computer monitors, brand new in packaging. We lost multiple TVs," said Michael Meng.

"The apartment above us, they also had a break in on the first day of school, and then two days later the third floor apartment had gotten broken into," Mantri said.

Four break-ins later, the students said the building's landlord added metal gates to the back doors.

"I think all of us were just so scared by this experience that now we're even extra meticulous about everything," said Mantri.

Chicago police are investigating the burglaries, the most recent of which happened on Sept. 28. The landlord has also added security cameras around the building to make the students feel more comfortable.